The Mets fell to the Astros, 8-6, on Sunday afternoon and were swept in the three-game series. They’re now 5-16 in their last 21 games.
The game got off to a good start, as the Mets jumped out to a 4-1 lead, as they scored two runs in each of the first two innings. But Chris Flexen was hit hard, including two homers, and the Mets soon found themselves down by three runs.
But the Mets kept putting runners on base and gave themselves multiple opportunities to score. Jose Reyes and Nori Aoki, the top two hitters in the lineup, got on base seven times and scored four runs, with Aoki also driving in two runners.
Unfortunately, Asdrubal Cabrera and Kevin Plawecki were unable to cash in despite numerous chances. Cabrera came up with seven runners on base while Plawecki had eight baserunners and neither was able to plate a run.
Juan Lagares had a strong defensive game and turned in one play that was a treat to see. A ball was hit to left field, one that went high off the wall and got away from Brandon Nimmo. Lagares raced over from center field and on the dead run fired a strike to third base to nab the batter. The Houston player reacted like he couldn’t believe he was thrown out on the play, which only added to the overall enjoyment. For once, Lagares threw the ball on the fly, instead of bouncing it to the target, which was why he was able to get the out. He also made nice plays charging in on a ball and going back near the fence to corral another out.
No comments from anyone? As Keith Hernandez said today: “Gary there’s 26 games to go.” Gary said: “and do you want to complete your thought?”
One comment: does Ahmed Rosario look sloppy and maybe a little lazy on the field? Just throwing it out there. He looks a little privileged and it’s showing.
At this point, as the team is playing out the string, I enjoy seeing the effort put forth by the various players. One player that had a good series was Juan Lagares, many nice defensive plays including three today. While his batting average is only .257, if the glove shines, then he’s an option of sorts. Also, today he had such a big jump on a steal that the Astros radio announcer said the Astros were lucky that the batter fouled off the pitch because Lagares had that bag with ease.
Another comment by the announcers were that many veterans are disappointed when “playing out the string” and so it’s usually harder to motivate them. That may be the easy way out, but a pro is a pro, and now we can see how many are truly good influences how many aren’t. As we all know, everyone is a great guy when things are going great, but when adversity comes, who will keep their perspective and who doesn’t care?
one thing for sure, the “kids” should all be playing with their hair on fire. Im seeing Lagares and Nimmo playing full speed. not much else.
It is demoralizing when the team puts four runs on the board only for the pitcher to give it all back and then some. Flexen had four passable starts but his last two have been tough. His longest outing is six inning only once. Hopefully this learning experience from the forced promotion will help him in the future.
Nimmo now has a .394 OBA with three more walks. He would be seeing a lot of pitches as a lead off hitter. That kind of OBA would look good in front of Cespedes and Conforto. It bears watching to see if he can maintain much a lofty average.
It would have been good for Plawecki to deliver that clutch hit for his resume for back up catcher. He needs to keep hitting while he is getting the opportunity to play.
Being a met fan means you look for the positives. Happy to see Lagares, Nimmo and Smith step up and work toward cementing roster spots next season. Also let’s remember Rosario is young and will certainly get a lot of attention from staff in the off season as he heads toward being the starting SS next year.
By February we will once again see what arms we have. Perhaps Flexen moves to the pen to limit his pending implosions. Veterans may rue plaing out the string but the kids should be thrilled to be up with the big team and if they don’t seize the opportunity they will likely be included in a change of scenery off season move.